CVE-2018-16877 in Pacemaker
Summary
by MITRE
A flaw was found in the way pacemaker's client-server authentication was implemented in versions up to and including 2.0.0. A local attacker could use this flaw, and combine it with other IPC weaknesses, to achieve local privilege escalation.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/04/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-16877 resides within the pacemaker cluster management system, a critical component in high-availability computing environments that coordinates cluster resources and ensures service availability. This flaw specifically impacts the client-server authentication mechanism implemented in pacemaker versions up to and including 2.0.0, representing a significant security weakness that undermines the integrity of the cluster's authentication framework. The issue manifests as a design flaw in how the system validates client connections and authenticates users attempting to interact with the cluster management services, creating an exploitable condition that can be leveraged by malicious actors within the system's operational boundaries.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate authentication validation within pacemaker's inter-process communication protocols, where the system fails to properly verify the identity and privileges of connecting clients before granting access to cluster management functions. This authentication bypass occurs at the protocol level where client connections are established, allowing unauthorized access to administrative functions that should be restricted to legitimate cluster administrators. The flaw operates through a combination of weak credential handling and insufficient access control enforcement, enabling an attacker to manipulate the authentication flow and gain unauthorized access to privileged cluster management operations. According to CWE classification, this vulnerability maps to CWE-287 which addresses improper authentication issues, while the ATT&CK framework would categorize this under privilege escalation techniques where adversaries leverage system weaknesses to elevate their access rights.
The operational impact of CVE-2018-16877 extends beyond simple unauthorized access, as local attackers can combine this authentication flaw with existing inter-process communication weaknesses to achieve local privilege escalation. This combination creates a multi-layered attack vector where the initial authentication bypass serves as a foothold for further exploitation, potentially allowing attackers to gain root privileges or administrative access to the entire cluster management system. The implications are particularly severe in production environments where pacemaker clusters manage critical infrastructure services, as successful exploitation could lead to complete cluster compromise and service disruption. Organizations relying on pacemaker for high-availability configurations face significant risk of unauthorized modifications to cluster resources, potential data exposure, and complete service availability compromise.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2018-16877 require immediate patching of affected pacemaker installations to version 2.0.1 or later, which contains the necessary authentication fixes. System administrators should also implement additional security controls including restricting local access to cluster management services, implementing proper access controls on IPC mechanisms, and monitoring for unauthorized authentication attempts. Network segmentation and privilege separation practices should be reinforced to limit the potential impact of any successful exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper authentication design in cluster management systems and highlights the need for comprehensive security testing of inter-process communication protocols. Organizations should conduct thorough vulnerability assessments of their cluster management infrastructure and implement continuous monitoring to detect potential exploitation attempts, particularly focusing on anomalous authentication patterns and privilege escalation activities that may indicate successful exploitation of similar authentication weaknesses.